On your marks, get set... no. As the clock ticks beyond the halfway point in the January, the expected barrage of Premier League deals is still to materialise.

But Liverpool supporters are starting to become a little bit twitchy as many of their closest rivals appear ready to start splashing the cash ahead of the mid-season moving deadline on Monday, February 3.

When it comes to transfers actually being completed, matters remain relatively quiet. Tottenham Hotspur have signed a reserve goalkeeper in Antonin Kinsky, Aston Villa have swooped for Donyell Malen, Brighton have taken on Inter Miami's Diego Gomez while strugglers Ipswich Town, Leicester City and Wolves have each made a capture.

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That, though, has been about it so far, the powder being kept dry by those nearer the top of the Premier League table.

It won't last forever. The January window has traditionally seen either teams push already-agreed moves through at the start of the month - such as Liverpool's signing of Cody Gakpo in 2023 - or, as is more traditional, wait until much nearer deadline day to determine which areas of the team should and can be strengthened or, in the case of sales, could withstand being weakened for the closing four months of the campaign.

Champions Manchester City may ultimately be the busiest of title-chasing clubs this month given their under-par first half to the season. They have agreed a £33.6million fee with Lens for Uzbek centre-back Abdukodir Khusanov and are reportedly close to signing attacker Omar Marmoush from Eintracht Frankfurt. There will likely be more arrivals to the Etihad.

Arsenal, meanwhile, are believed to be on the brink of a deal to take Martin Zubimendi from Real Sociedad in the summer. Liverpool, of course, were in a similar position with the midfielder before the start of the season, only for the Spain international to U-turn on his decision to switch to Anfield.

And the Gunners' strong interest in Zubimendi has served only to further agitate Reds supporters who, despite the team's outstanding showing so far under new boss Arne Slot, have grown concerned at the lack of fresh faces under the Dutchman, Federico Chiesa at present the only new signing to feature and even then limited to just a single start.

With Liverpool top of both the Premier League and Champions League tables, there's no doubt now would seem an opportune time to make a January move. After all, they have not been averse to bolstering title challenges in the past with New Year arrivals - Takumi Minamino boosted numbers in 2020 while Luis Diaz was a strong performer in the second half of the 2021/22 season as the Reds chased a quadruple.

The difference now is those transfers came with Liverpool very much a well-oiled machine behind the scenes. Jurgen Klopp had been in situ for several years as manager while sporting director Michael Edwards had long established his reputation in the market, assisted by the likes of Julian Ward.

While Edwards and Ward have now returned under the Fenway Sports Group umbrella, the entire structure at Liverpool has been overhauled during the last 12 months, from coaching and recruitment through to scouting. And that hasn't made it easy for Richard Hughes to hit the ground running after being appointed sporting director last year, regardless of having inherited the contract situations of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk.

Nevertheless, the optics could be better for Hughes. Slot and his squad may be able to demonstrate their work on the pitch every few days, but for the sporting director the transfer windows are the prime time to shine.

And whether it's sourcing a new signing or brokering a new deal with at least one of the contract trio, Hughes and his recruitment team could this window settle some nerves among the Liverpool fanbase, provide help and clarity to Slot, and ease some of the growing pressure on his position in the process.